Marcos Drops Record ₱58 Billion on LGUs — Plus Free Rice for 5 Million Families
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. just opened the government's wallet wider than ever for local governments, bumping the Local Government Support Fund to a historic ₱58 billion for 2026 — a whopping ₱34 billion increase from last year's allocation.
Speaking at the launch of "Sa Bagong Pilipinas, Bawat Bayan Makikinabang" at Malacañan's Heroes Hall on Monday, Marcos admitted the old system was painfully slow. Under the previous demand-driven setup, LGUs had to submit stacks of requirements before seeing a single peso — and sometimes, requests just disappeared into bureaucratic black holes. "Hirap at mabagal ang proseso — kung minsan pa nawawala 'yung request," the President said, drawing laughs from the crowd.
The beefed-up fund comes with a major perk for Filipino families: more than 5 million households will receive 60 kilos of rice annually — that's 10 kilos per month for six months — distributed through their local governments. "May maihahain na sa hapag ang bawat pamilyang Pilipino," Marcos declared.
Beyond rice, the LGSF will bankroll hospitals, health stations, multi-purpose halls that double as evacuation centers, farm-to-market roads, water systems, and electrification projects. In a scene that caught everyone's attention, former 2022 presidential rivals Leni Robredo (now Naga City mayor) and Isko Moreno (now Manila mayor) both showed up at Malacañan for the ceremony. Moreno said Manila got ₱500 million for PLM's College of Medicine, while Robredo's Naga received ₱500 million for coliseum retrofitting.
The message from Marcos was clear: the needs of communities — laki man o maliit — can't wait for paperwork anymore.
Source: Manila Bulletin
